1 Editor in chief MJCP Salvatore Settineri Suppl. 4/2 B 1 AIP Clinical and Dynamic Section Proceedings POSTER By Tambelli Renata & Trentini Cristina
Proceedings
XVIII NATIONAL CONGRESS
ITALIAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION
CLINICAL AND DYNAMIC SECTION
ROMA -SEPTEMBER 16-18 2016
Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology
Sapienza University, Roma Italy
96 Editor in chief MJCP Salvatore Settineri Suppl. 4/2 B 1 AIP Clinical and Dynamic Section Proceedings POSTER By Tambelli Renata & Trentini Cristina
impulsivity, than social gamblers did. Overall, these results support the existence of a significant association between impulsivity and pathological gambling.
STRESSFUL LIFE EVENTS AND PSYCHOSOMATIC SYMPTOMS IN FIBROMYALGIA: A CASE-CONTROL STUDY
Tesio Valentina (1,2), Ghiggia Ada (1,2), Larice Sara (2) (1) Department of Psychology, University of Turin.
(2) Clinical Psychology Unit, A.O.U. Città della Salute e della Scienza, Turin.
Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FM) is a chronic musculoskeletal pain disorder characterized by widespread pain and muscle tenderness associated with psychological disorders. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the prevalence of psychological distress, psychosomatic symptoms and stressful life events in a group of patients with FM, compared to a sample of patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). Since RA is a chronic pain condition with low psychosomatic symptoms, we hypothesized that the psychological components could be more elevated in FM. Sixty-one consecutive female with FM and 75 consecutive female with RA were enrolled in the study and assessed by: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) for psychological distress, Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), Diagnostic Criteria for Psychosomatic Research (DCPR) for psychosomatic symptoms and Traumatic Experiences Checklist (TEC) for trauma. FM patients reported significantly higher levels of psychological distress and difficulty in identifying emotions (TAS-20 subscale), compared to RA patients. On DCPR, FM patients showed a significantly higher prevalence (p < .001) of persistence somatization, demoralization, conversion symptoms and anniversary reaction. What is more, TEC results highlighted that FM patients reported significantly more traumatic events than RA patients on total score (p < .001). Particularly, FM patients reported significantly higher scores on the composite subscales of emotional neglect and emotional abuse (p < .001). The present study revealed not only a higher presence of psychological distress, but also a higher prevalence of psychosomatic symptoms and a greater number of lifetime trauma in patients with FM, compared to RA patients. These results highlight the importance of a multidisciplinary approach, which takes into account also the psychological aspects in the treatment of FM.
